


Choices

by Miicah



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-18
Updated: 2017-04-08
Packaged: 2018-05-07 10:23:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5453234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miicah/pseuds/Miicah
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“If Zoom finds out who you care for, who you love…he’ll take them from you.” </p>
<p>Everything was not as cut and dry as it seemed, and he didn't know which hurt more: knowing who he <i>should</i> save...</p>
<p>...Or knowing who he <i>wanted</i> to save.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So this came at me out of no where, born out of thoughts of the New Year’s episode promo and the BTS photos that Candice/Grant had posted. I know they happen in two totally different times but my brain wanted to mash the two together and this happened. Enjoy!

“We’re gonna find her, Barry.”

They were currently holed up in Barry’s lab, shrouded not only by the darkness of the night but also by the lack of florescent lightning; the two of them had more pressing things on their mind to remember something as mundane as flipping on a switch. The only source of illumination came through the windows, and the moonlight splashed across Iris’ face as she squatted down in front of her best friend, who was hunched over in his chair, elbows digging into his knees and face buried in his hands.

“This is all my fault,” Barry muttered, his voice muffled by his hands. “I was right; everyone around me either gets hurt or dies—”

“ _Hey_ ,” the journalist said sternly, tugging his arms towards her so that he would be forced to look at her. “Patty’s not dead and she’s not going to be until she’s old and grey, got it?” She didn’t say anything about the former, because there was a pretty decent chance she probably _was_ , and Iris didn’t want blatantly to lie to him. “You know she’s a tough woman and she knows she’s got you in her corner. You two will be making bad puns together before you know it.”

She believed the choked sob that escaped the forensic scientist was supposed to be some sort of laugh and her heart broke at the desperate, pleading look he gave her. Iris swallowed thickly, knowing he was teetering on the edge—she missed it a few months ago, lost in her own grief, but remembered all the signs from when his mother died like it was yesterday, and she’d be damned if she lost him again as he closed himself off to everyone around him. “And me, and our dads, and our friends, none of us are going anywhere, you got that?”

Sliding her fingers down his arms, she took his hands into her own and said nothing as Barry twisted them around so that they were intertwined, instead squeezing them in reassurance. “I know the police are already on it but I still got my feelers out there. I’ve got a farther reach than them. You and the team will be the first to know of even the smallest of hints. We _will_ find her, Barry,” Iris repeated, hoping it’d stick this time.

Fern green eyes searched hers for a long moment before he slowly nodded, moving his gaze to their connected hands. “I… _thank you_ , Iris. I know you’re busy with Wally…how’s that going, by the way?” the speedster asked, needing a change of topic.

“A girl can multi-task, y’know,” she teased before shrugging, moving out of her crouched position and into a standing one. “And it’s…going, slowly. He’s coming over for lunch tomorrow before we’re supposed to take a look at this car he’s building. Did I tell you he’s a drag racer? I have a feeling I’m soon going to be re-acquainted with that big oak tree on Fairmont Drive.”

The laugh that sounded from him this time was stronger, and without letting go of her Barry motioned for her to sit on his desk. “I’ll make sure the Flash is around to protect such a historic landmark.”

Iris gasped indignantly and this time she squeezed his fingers with the intent of causing pain instead of comfort. “Oh, gee, thanks. Its spores will be forever indebted to you,” she drawled, eventually joining in on his chuckling.

“Well, I’m pretty sure oaks don’t release spores—“ Barry started but stopped at the look he gave her that told him he was going full-nerd on her again. He tapered before saying, “I’ll be sure to make myself scarce, then.” It wasn’t like he wasn’t going to be busy anyway, putting everything he had into finding Patty.

“I’m sure you’ll grow on Wally.”

The CSI made a noncommittal noise. First impressions were hard to break and somehow he had made a bad one with Iris’ brother. “You guys should have the time alone, anyway.”

The journalist nodded before smiling and pulling her best friend up to his feet. “Let’s go home.”

* * *

“She makes this?” Iris asked as she opened the door, which was a little tricky considering one of her arms was carrying a bag full of groceries.

“Oh, yeah, it’s my favourite,” Wally answered as he closed the door behind him, shuffling his own bag of food from one arm to the other. “My mom…our mom… _Francine_ ,” he eventually decided on the most neutral way to refer to their mother as, “Cooks it for the two of us all the time.” The younger sibling paused as he took in his sister—god, it still took getting used to, knowing he had a whole other family out there—as she mulled over the news. He had always been trying to show her and Joe the side of Francine that _he_ knew. “You two are more alike than you think.”

The older West bit her tongue on that one, knowing all the bad connotations that could mean and how hard Wally was trying to make them all reconcile. It wouldn’t do to start a fight over ‘their’ mother when they were trying to create something solid. So Iris put on a smile and led the way to the kitchen so that they could get to work. “Part of me is wondering if we should have a cook off and see if we could each learn a thing or two.”

Wally let out a small chuckle. “I can tear up a kitchen just as much as I can tear up the streets,” he warned at her challenge.

“Yeah…not making me want to jump into a vehicle with you any faster,” she teased, though her laugh faded as she turned her head back down the hallway they had just walked down, thinking she heard something. “I’ll be right back.”

At his nod Iris retraced their steps back the way they came, stopping short as she noticed the front door was ajar with the remnants of the lock scattered all over the floor. Her breath caught in her throat, and just as she turned back towards the kitchen she heard the tell-a-tell sound of something—or someone—falling to the ground. “Wally!” she cried, but didn’t take more than a couple of steps before the embodiment of darkness stood a few feet before her; if it wasn’t for the gleam in his eye and the flicker of electric blue lightning that danced across his body she would’ve thought there was no end or beginning to him.

Letting adrenaline cut through her nerves, Iris quickly moved to overturn the small table they had in the hallway before dashing into the living room. She grabbed the first heavy object she could find—the table lamp—and ripped it out of the socket it was plugged into as she lifted it up, ready to hurl it in Zoom’s direction, but in the same motion she had turned to do so the speedster was already in front of her. In a blink of an eye the object was smashed against the wall above the fireplace as Zoom deflected it. In vain the journalist reached out for something, anything, else, though she was quickly stopped by a vice grip on her wrist.

Instinctively the shorter of the two pulled back but the hold on her became so impossibly tighter that Iris believed her wrist would snap if he squeezed it any further. Hot tears prickled her eyes but she still looked up at Zoom defiantly, who tilted his head as he regarded her.

“You’ve got a lot of fight in you,” he said before he pulled her closer to him. “Good; you’re going to need it where you’re going.”

That was the last thing Iris remembered before everything went turned to black.

* * *

Barry bit on his thumb as he looked at the monitors in the Cortex of S.T.A.R. Labs, searching hard for any blip in the scanners that could possibly lead to Patty. “When are Cisco and Joe coming by again?” he asked Caitlin, who sat at the terminal of computers behind where he stood.

“Any minute now—they should be coming back from a meeting about the task force,” the doctor replied. Had it been any other time she would’ve worried about the speedster not knowing what was going on in his own workplace, but she left it alone and focused back at the task at hand.

Dr. Wells watched the forensic scientist from the doorway of one of the two side labs that he leaned against; he wouldn’t allow himself to feel it but he knew the guilt of his choice and what he had done was there, under the surface, waiting for him to acknowledge it so it could swallow him whole. Before he realized what he was doing he was halfway across the room towards Barry, who nodded at him in greeting.

“Hey,” Barry said by way of a verbal greeting. When the Earth 2 man said and did nothing but continue to stare at him, he dropped his hand and turned to face the other more squarely. “What’s up? Thought of something?”

“It’s just…” Harry trailed off. A warning, however subtle, was the least he could do, right? “If Zoom finds out who you care for, who you love…he’ll take them from you.” _I should know_ , was left unsaid, though its implication was obvious.

The speedster’s eyebrows came together in confusion. Wasn’t that what Patty’s kidnapping was all about? Thinking that perhaps the older man was worried about his own safety, he put a hand on Wells’ shoulder. “I’m not going to let Zoom get to you guys, I promise.” He was going to make sure it was a vow he could keep.

“It’s not me you should be worried about.”

Harrison was being incredibly cryptic, but before Barry could question the man further on it Joe and Cisco came charging into the room carrying an unconscious Wally between them. “What the—”

“Oh, my god, what happened?” Caitlin shouted, automatically getting to her feet, both clearing and leading the way to the adjoined medical room.

“We dunno!” the engineer answered as they gently laid the youngest West on the bed, knowing Joe was too preoccupied to reply to anything. “We got a text from Iris that she had some news so we stopped by the house on our way here and the door was wide open.” Cisco opened his mouth but he took a look at the detective and edited the next words that he said. “We figured it’d be a lot less suspicious bringing him here than to the hospital.”

“It looks like he got a blow to the head,” the lone woman assessed as she looked the boy over. It was pretty textbook not to move someone who might have a head injury but she didn’t think pointing that out was going to help matters—they did what they thought was best at the time. “I’m going to need to take some scans before I can treat him.”

Barry looked around, waiting for someone else to come into the room with them. “Iris…” he said slowly, knowing that his best friend was supposed to have the afternoon with her brother. “Where’s Iris?”

Before the forensic scientist could have the inevitable freak out, Cisco pulled the fellow meta-human aside before he got Joe worked up again—it took everything he had to stop the man from going Rambo and focus on the one child he actually had with him and who needed his help now. “Barry,” he started, his voice low. “Your place was _trashed_. I…whatever happened, I’m pretty sure she put up a huge fight.”

The speedster stared at Cisco as if his words weren’t computing, and as his gaze wandered they landed on Harrison Wells, who hadn’t moved from where he had left him before the other trio came in so unceremoniously, what the man had said before it all went down was slowly beginning to make some sense.

“You…” Barry growled before he flashed before him, throwing him against the wall and pinning him there with a force so strong it cracked the surface behind Harry. He couldn’t believe that he let himself be betrayed by the same person twice. “What did you do to her? _Where’s Iris?_ ”

Wells couldn’t speak with Barry’s forearm crushing his throat, and though Cisco would’ve liked nothing more than to see Harry get his ass kicked they probably, unfortunately, needed his help. “Barry, Barry…” he tried to calm the speedster as he rushed over to them—talking Barry down was always Iris’ thing; she was practically the only one in the entire universe who could ever get through to the CSI. She was like his anchor, and he hated to think of what would become of the speedster if something happened to her.

Clearly he wasn’t helping if Wells starting to turn a light shade of blue was any indication, and he yelled out the other piece of information he was sitting on. “I Vibed on Wally!”

Taken by surprise, the enraged male loosened his hold on Harrison just enough for the other man to cough and try to take in air, but Barry paid him no attention. “What?”

Running a hand through his hair, half in relief of getting his attention, half out of agitation, Cisco explained. “When I touched Wally, I got a vibe. I saw Iris in the woods…”

Speechless, he racked his brain for what it could mean. “Is she okay? And what woods…like Granite Peak?”

Cisco looked off to the side, wringing his hands together. “She was…limping, but I mean otherwise, I guess. And…I _really_ wish I knew, Barry. All I saw were trees…” Honestly, she could’ve been _anywhere_. “All I remember is this one clearing, where some trees were lying sideways…”

“There’s a place like that,” Harrison said, though his voice was coarse, “On Earth 2.”

_That_ recaptured Barry’s attention, and he glared at the man he still pinned to the wall. “Zoom took her to _Earth 2?!_ ”

“Barry…if what Harry says is true…you can’t be in _two worlds_ at once.” the Vibe pointed out needlessly. Being in two places at once on one planet was hard enough. “Patty…” he began, but didn’t finish. Patty needed him on this Earth…

_…And Iris needs me on that Earth_ , Barry thought, unknowingly finishing Cisco’s own musings.

“Who will it be, Barry?” Harrison asked him, a ghost of a smile on his face, and the speedster pushed down on his throat once more.

“I should’ve let Joe shoot you,” he hissed, tears gathering in his eyes. “I should’ve let Grodd have you…Caitlin should’ve let you bleed out…”

“Barry,” Cisco called, trying to pull him back by the shoulder but finding the taller man was as solid as a rock. “Barry! Let’s move him to the Pipeline and call Jay. We can figure this out. We’ll save them both.”

Agonizingly slow and with complete reluctance, Barry pulled back again, but before Harrison could relax and catch his breath again he found himself in a cell, watching as the speedster slammed the button to lock him in with so much force he was sure to bruise. Without the man in his eyesight or presence, the scientist crumpled to the ground and buried his head in his hands, easily envisioning Iris squatting before him, her warm fingers on his arms, soothing him.

He didn’t know what hurt more: knowing who he _should_ save...

...Or knowing who he _wanted_ to save.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _I can save them both_ , he kept repeating to himself.
> 
> Maybe if he said it often enough, he’d begin to believe it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah...I wasn’t really planning on continuing this because I didn’t really plot out farther than the first part lol I’m still teetering between two theories of who Zoom could be and it’s making it hard to write him without having someone in mind, and I feel like I just made this thing worse but the idea’s still nagging at me, so here you go! I hope it isn't completely awful!

The sound of birds chirping was the first thing that greeted Iris as she regained consciousness. The next was the ache that just seemed to permeate through her entire body, and with a groan she tried to move, wincing at the pain that shot through her when she did so. Okay, so maybe she should stay put for a bit longer. Stilling, the journalist opted to just open her eyes instead to take in her surroundings. She opened them slowly, squinting in case the sun was out to avoid blinding herself. To her surprise, it was daylight, but much of it had a hard time getting through the thick canopy of the foliage above.

 _I’m in a forest_ , Iris realized, and she searched her mind for the last thing she remembered. At the exact moment it fell into place the object of her thoughts came into her line of sight above her, and despite the protests of her body she shot up into a sitting position, crawling backwards until she hit a tree that halted her from going any farther. Even though the evil speedster didn’t make any move towards her, the distance between them left a lot to be desired for her. The two of them held their stares in a heated stalemate, the silence dragging on until she decided to break it. “I didn’t take you as the camping type.”

Zoom tilted his head as he looked at her, much the same he had back at her dad’s house, and it unnerved her as much as it did then. It was as if she was something that peaked his interest in some way. “I love the hunt.”

Before she could stop herself she scoffed at the double meaning of his answer, and she braced her hands behind her—her right wrist throbbed where he had grabbed it before and she didn’t need to look at it to know it was bruised—against the rough bark of the tree as she pushed herself up into a standing position. Escape seemed pretty futile against a speedster but her chances, however minuscule, were better if she was running than crawling. “I’m surprised you still have room on your mantel.”

“I’m not going to kill you.”

Though it wasn’t said, the ‘yet’ that was purposely left out of the end of that sentence to provide a false sense of security still hung above her head like a tightening noose. Besides the fact that she was pretty sure the dark speedster wasn’t going to play twenty questions with her, Iris wasn’t sure she wanted to know why—she was sure enough of the fact that his answer wouldn’t mean anything good for her or Barry.

 _Oh, god, Barry_. Unconsciously, she lifted a hand to her neck, closing her eyes for a brief moment when her fingers only met with skin, trying not to admit how much more alone she felt without _it_ there. The last thing Barry needed was a distraction, which was exactly what she was going to be when he found out what happened. And then there was her dad and Wally… _I swear if he isn’t all right…_ She couldn’t stay here, wherever ‘here’ was. She had to get back to them.

The man in black must’ve recognized the exact moment Iris had found her resolve because he said, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

The journalist didn’t bother giving him a response and instead opted to make a run for it. She had watched enough horror movies with Barry to know it wasn’t wise to look back (and she’d yelled at the characters on the screen at least half the time for them making such a rookie mistake) but it was like some internal instinct and Iris cursed herself in her head when she did exactly that.

Zoom was no longer there, not that she expected him to be.

She returned her gaze forward, but not two steps later the ground beneath her foot gave way and something twisted in her ankle when her body tried to regain balance. Iris hit the ground hard, knocking the wind right out of her, and she cried out when a clawed hand wrapped around her injured ankle and pulled her back roughly. Forced to roll onto her side to try and alleviate the pain, she resisted the urge to flinch as Zoom leaned in.

“The hard way, then,” he said in that deep, raspy voice of his, due to lack of usage or corrupted from all the stolen power he had she wasn’t sure, before he was gone.

Letting out a shaking breath, Iris chanced a look around but didn’t see the speedster anywhere. As she slowly got rose to her feet, though, and limped forward a step, she could feel his eyes on her from wherever he was and knew she was not alone. She was terrified—Linda’s words of _‘He’s a monster,’_ echoed in her head, with visions of Barry’s broken body being held up at CCPN in front of her flashing before her eyes—but it wasn’t the only emotion that was coursing through her veins. It seemed like he was unbeatable but under all that he was human, and she knew all too well that humans could bleed and be injured and—if taken to the extreme—killed. If Zoom thought he could use her for whatever he was planning, he was dead wrong.

_Bring it on._

* * *

It was as if a literal black cloud was looming over Barry from where he sat in the corner, away from everyone, and no one quite had the courage to go over to try and console him. A lot of it had to do with not knowing what to say—it was like he was inconsolable, or that whatever they said would just sound empty and forced and fake. Perhaps they’d say the wrong thing and just completely break him, or set him off into a blind rage.

No one knew better what kind of landmine Barry was than Cisco, who had volunteered to go with the speedster back to the West house to take ‘crime scene’ photos—not the best choice of words, by the way—on the request of Jay. The Earth 2 Flash had gotten an unreadable look on his face when he heard what had happened, but he didn’t feel confident enough to share his thoughts on the matter until he had some evidence to back it up.

A multitude of emotions had flickered over the speedster’s face when they first stepped foot onto the porch and then over the threshold—fury, worry, guilt. A dead, blank expression that Cisco supposed was meant to be professional took over as he snapped photos and picked up various broken pieces of wood, ceramic, _his life_ , if the engineer was to go the metaphorical route, trying to find clues and mentally reconstruct what had transpired.

There was a sharp intake of breath as Barry caught a glimpse of a familiar gold chain—he’d remember it anywhere; he had bought it, after all—now broken, the ring that accompanied it having rolled under the couch, he found after searching for it on his hands and knees in desperation. His first thought was that, _she wore it_ , and, _how long_ had she been doing so, then, _why_ did she think she’d have to hide it from him, before the most likely answer came to him. It brought a smile to his face to know that she had carried a piece of him with her, but it was soon followed by the utter revulsion that Zoom had touched it and ripped it from her neck, sullying all the pure emotion it represented, not to mention the fact that it was now a reminder of how he failed to be there for her, once again.

Just like the original, full of broken promises.

Long, slender fingers closed over the band, pressing so tightly against his palm it most likely made a deep impression on the skin. _God_ , when he found Zoom…

Broken out of his thoughts by the shuffling of Cisco, Barry cleared his throat as he began pulling off his gloves; there was nothing left to dissect here. “Anything?” he asked the other male in a small voice as he began to pack up his equipment.

Though startled out of being addressed, the question itself didn’t come out of left field like it appeared to be. The engineer was more surprised the fellow meta-human noticed, but he supposed he shouldn’t have been—after all, Barry was a CSI with an actual job to do there, unlike him. But he didn’t tag along to just to provide moral support; he knew that Barry would never ask him outright to try and Vibe again to see Iris, and that made him want to do it even more, to feel like he was actually doing something to help.

Cisco wasn’t sure if touching Wally again would work, and he didn’t want to purposely try it while the guy was unconscious, especially with Joe hanging around. He could wait until the youngest West regained consciousness, but what exactly was he going to do? Touch the kid every thirty seconds, saying that he hoped to get visions of his previously estranged sister trapped in another dimension? Yeah, he didn’t need powers to know how _that_ would likely go down.

So he came hoping Vibe would show up, but after touching everything he possibly could he had to face the reality that it was just plain old Cisco standing helplessly there. Both afraid and ashamed to admit that, the engineer pursed his lips together, gave a slight shake of his head and tried to pretend that Barry’s small accepting nod didn’t break his heart.

They had cleaned up the place and replaced the broken lock before returning to S.T.A.R. Labs, and Cisco stole a glance across the room at Barry, who was distantly fingering the ring he had just taken out of his pocket. Only the tapping of Jay’s fingers on the keyboard accompanied the silence, and just as Cisco opened his mouth to say something—he hadn’t quite figured out what just yet—the clicking of Caitlin’s heels as she entered the Cortex saved him.

The forensic scientist looked up then and ran a hand down his face before placing the item in his hands back in his pocket. “How’s Wally?” he asked as he forced himself to approach the group and stop wallowing in self-deprecation for the time being.

The doctor looked at him in momentary shock—it was the first movement and words they had heard from the speedster in a while—before she shook herself out of it. “He has a mild concussion, but considering what Zoom could’ve done to him I think he got pretty lucky with having just that. I’ll have to do some cognitive tests once he wakes up but he should come out of it with a clean bill of health. This may or may not be a good thing, depending on what you plan on telling him about what happened.”

“Well, Joe figured he could tell him he got into an accident while racing, which should cover most of our bases, but Iris…” Barry trailed off, shifting uncomfortably. He supposed they could say she got called away on assignment but it didn’t feel right to erase what happened to her like that.

“All right, where are we with this bastard?”

Attention shifted from the speedster to the detective as he emerged from the medical lab that housed Wally, looking a little worse for wear, what with his clothes all rumpled and looking like he didn’t catch a wink of sleep.

“Joe…” Barry started, taking a few steps towards him, but stopped both his movement and his words at the hand the older man put up to halt him.

“There’s nothing more I can do for my son, and my daughter and partner need me. Where are we?” he repeated pointedly. Joe figured he was going to hear it from Francine when she heard what happened to Wally but in the grand scheme of things that was actually the least of his problems; in fact, keeping Wally away was probably the safest for him at the moment.

Jay tapped a few keys on the keyboard and stood as he displayed the photos from both Patty’s apartment and the West’s house on the monitors. “I can say pretty confidently that Zoom didn’t take Patty, at least not directly himself.”

The fellow speedster turned sharply towards him. “How can you be so sure?”

“The state of your house looks like a tornado blew through it; Iris saw him coming, she put up a fight. Patty’s, on the other hand, looks like there was barely a struggle, and that’s not who she is. Meaning…”

“Someone attacked her from behind,” Joe finished for him, examining the crime scene photos.

“If there’s one thing I know about Zoom, it’s that he wants you to see him coming, for you to know that you’re powerless to stop him. It’s not his style to strike where you can’t see him.”

Caitlin turned in her chair and looked up at the Earth 2 native. “But Wally sustained injuries on the back of his skull.”

Jay crossed his arms and nodded; it was something that had also occurred to him. “My guess is that he wasn’t Zoom’s target—he was speedbump he took out of the equation, not worthy enough to face head on. Caitlin’s right; it’s a miracle his condition isn’t worse.”

“So another meta-human from your world was sent over here to take Patty?” Barry asked, an unsettling feeling churning in his stomach.

“Or one of ours is stirring up trouble, like Christmas,” Cisco supplied.

“Zoom _would_ use the distraction to go for what he’s really after while your attention is elsewhere,” Jay agreed.

The scarlet speedster shook his head—something wasn’t adding up. “So why didn’t he make his move at Christmas then? Me being double-teamed wasn’t enough of a distraction for him?”

The crimson comet was at a lost for words. It wasn’t like he knew the thoughts of a speed force-hungry demon. “I don’t know, Barry.”

“But Harry might,” Vibe pointed out, and Barry looked even less pleased with that answer than he was with Jay’s—he wasn’t sure he could look at that man again and not come close to killing him the next time around.

“Okay, that issue aside, the plan with Patty is to basically find out where she’s being held and deal with whoever took her.” He supposed he should be glad there weren’t any real deviations from the original strategy they had. Fern green eyes moved to regard both Joe and Cisco, remembering a small detail the latter had mentioned before. “You said Iris texted you, and that’s why you stopped by the house first?”

“Yeah,” Cisco confirmed, “But we never found her phone at the house. Zoom doesn’t seem like he keeps up with technology, but if he’s in cahoots with Mr. Backstabber 2.0 downstairs we don’t know if that message was legit or not.”

As Barry ran his hands over his ears, Caitlin piped up. “I could call Linda—maybe they know the same people, or they contacted her when they couldn’t reach Iris.” She gave him a small smile and a nod at the ‘Thank you,’ he mouthed to her for her help.

“Unfortunately, that’s only the beginning of the complications surrounding Iris’ kidnapping.” Cisco wheeled over to the console and brought up several maps. “If we assume that Granite Peak is indeed the woods in question, we’d have to verify that it isn’t the one on this Earth, and it could take _days_ to comb over that many acres.” That was, if Barry were to focus his efforts on getting his girlfriend back first.

The speedster’s hands stilled over his ears as if trying to block out what Cisco was saying. _Days?_ There was no way he was leaving Iris at the hands of Zoom for _days_. He barely survived five minutes with the man, and _he_ was able to heal himself. Just thinking of his best friend with Zoom now was making him lose his mind.

“Granite Peak?” Joe echoed, distantly remembering the small briefing Barry gave him regarding Cisco’s vibe vision. “Isn’t Henry still camping over there? If Zoom was around he might’ve saw something.”

“Or he might be in danger, too,” Jay added.

And the last thing Barry wanted was to put more people he loved in danger. But if his dad found out he could’ve helped find Iris in some way and he didn’t tell him, it’d devastate the older Allen. But just as he doubted it, Iris’ words came to him, in all its melodic timbre that he could never forget, saying, _‘Let him decide,’_ reminded him that it wasn’t his place to make decisions for other people. “I’ll ask him when I head up there for recon and try to convince him to come back to town at least until it’s safe.”

Cisco sat up a little straighter in his chair, scratching the back of his ear as he asked, “Recon?”

The speedster nodded as if it was the most obvious thing. “Yeah. We don’t have the luxury of days to search. I’ll get it done in a couple of hours, tops.”

“Barry, Granite Peak is almost one million acres in size,” Caitlin stated. “Even at your max velocity, it’d take more than two hours. And what are you going to do if you find Iris and Zoom’s there?”

“I guess I’ll be reaching new speeds, then,” Barry replied back with a little more bite than he had intended before he flashed into his suit. “And…if Iris is there, she’s gonna be my priority. I’ll get her out.” Honestly, he hadn’t thought much further than that; he was still trying to get Wells’ words out of his head. “I’m gonna need some leads on Patty and a Plan B if it turns out Iris is on Earth 2 by the time I get back, okay guys?” And before they could blink, he was gone.

 _I can save them both,_ he kept repeating to himself.

Maybe if he said it often enough, he’d begin to believe it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like, I have bits and pieces of ideas but trying to make them make sense is tricky lol I had one line I wanted to do so badly in this part but I didn't get around to using it. Maybe in the next part, if I write it lol


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was practically nothing in the world Iris wouldn’t do for him.
> 
> And, _god_ , how badly he wanted to show her that it went both ways.

Barry hadn’t been to Granite Peak in a long while—not since he graduated college and had to trade in three month vacations and textbooks with plastic baggies and, well, he was lucky if he got two weeks off in a year, honestly. But he had every visit committed to memory. He remembered the very first camping trip he had out there with his dad, learning how to fish, pitching up a tent, lying in their sleeping bags pointing up at the constellations above them. The now bittersweet recollections of the handful of times his mom had joined them and they made it a family outing, her teasing, _“How have you guys survived without me?”_ when she made a fire faster than they ever did.

(How they literally barely survived without her after her death.)

He could never forget when they were thirteen and Iris proposed that they go camping that summer because she still remembered his comment about how nostalgic being at reptile camp the year before made him. To this day Barry still couldn’t put into words how considerate his best friend had been in suggesting they could go to a different spot so that they wouldn’t intrude on the ‘Allen campsite’. (It took a few years before he officially extended an invitation but the looks on their faces spoke volumes of how much it meant to them.) It had amazed him back then, but he laughed at it now, how Iris shared his mother’s skill at starting blazes, how she didn’t (okay, maybe _a little_ ) complain even though peeing in the bushes was so _not_ her thing.

(There was practically nothing in the world Iris wouldn’t do for him.

And, _god_ , how badly he wanted to show her that it went both ways.)

Returning to the National Park when Henry was finally released from prison was always a dream of Barry’s, something to look forward to—he even figured the four of them could go together sometime, go to both sites and have silly arguments about whose was better, find ‘their’ spot. (And it could easily be expanded to include the new Wests—maybe he could gain some cred with Wally if the younger male saw him gut a fish.) Granite Peak was a special place, and maybe that was why the speedster felt some way about it when he learned his dad went camping there on his own the first chance he was free.

_Next time_ , he promised himself, and here he was, wishing it was under better circumstances.

Barry came to a stop as he reached the familiar clearing of the ‘Allen campsite’, pulling the cowl from his face as he eyed the tent and the rocks circling a pile of branches. Not finding what, or rather who, he was looking for, the red-dressed male turned and stopped short as something came up behind him.

“Hey, slugger,” Henry greeted with a smile, a fishing pole in one hand and a couple of bass, still attached to hooks, in the other. “Either you _really_ wanted some fish for dinner or something’s up,” the older Allen joked, motioning at his son’s attire.

So surprised by his dad’s sudden appearance, Barry looked down at himself, confused, before letting out a laugh at seeing his Flash suit. “Hey, yeah…I thought you had your fill of largemouth bass for a while,” he teased back, staring at the decently-sized fish.

“Well, there isn’t exactly a Big Belly Burger around these parts, and between this and my stockpile cans of beans I think I made the safe choice.” They shared a laugh, and the ex-convict set down the stuff he was holding before facing the younger Allen. “What’s going on, son?”

The speedster’s smiled waned, and he let out a deep sigh as he was needlessly reminded of the reason for his visit. “You didn’t happen to see anything strange out here lately, have you? Like a blue streak, for example, or a certain investigative journalist?”

This caught both Henry’s attention and raised his alarm. “Iris?”

Grimly, Barry bobbed his head in affirmation. “Zoom took her, and I have it on pretty good authority that he brought her here,” he explained, waving his hand to indicate the Park they were in. At the confused look he received, he added, “It’s a long story.” Which was true, but it wasn’t exactly his to tell, either, especially when it was something Cisco had kept to himself for a long while.

Though the former doctor nodded in understanding, the apologetic look on his face told he didn’t have any good news for his son. “I wish I had something to tell you, but you’ll be the first to know if I do. In fact, I can look—”

“Actually,” Barry quickly interrupted, knowing what his dad was going to say and wanting to nip it in the bud before he could, “I was hoping you’d come back to town with me. I know you came out here for a reason—” one he still couldn’t fully wrap his head around, “—But it’d be safer around more people. I can’t lose anyone else I care about.” Maybe, technically, being in the city didn’t help Patty _or_ Iris, but at least he’d notice if his dad was gone a hell of a lot faster than trees ever would.

“‘Anyone else’?” Henry echoed, catching the nuance of how he said it.

Right, he hadn’t heard about that. “…Patty’s also missing.”

Chestnut-coloured eyes softened and Henry put a comforting hand on his son’s shoulder. “Oh, Barry…is she out here, too?”

Barry tried not to accept the solace his dad’s touch was trying to give him, because he didn’t believe he did anything to deserve it; everything that was happening was his fault. Instead, he focussed on the words and shook his head. “No, we don’t have a solid lead on her whereabouts yet, so I followed the only one we _do_ have. I couldn’t just sit around and do nothing anymore.”

“Well, if going back into the city is going to help find them, I’ll do it,” the former doctor agreed; despite what it looked like, Henry always did what was best for Barry, and it was like he said when he first left—if his son needed him, he’d be there. It was true when Iris had come for him, and it was clear it was true now.

The tiny smile that only briefly grazed Barry’s lips was his small token of appreciation, and he ran a gloved hand through his hair, messing tresses already made unruly by his cowl, as he moved his gaze to the campsite. “You have some time before I get back to pack whatever you want to bring with you.”

“Get back? Where are you going?”

“I have to be 100% sure Iris isn’t here, so I’m gonna go search the grounds.”

Henry glanced towards the west, where the sun was going to be in the near future. “Barry, the sunset…”

His father didn’t finish, probably in an attempt to soften the blow, but the forensic scientist could tell what the other male was alluding to—he was going to run out of daylight before he could finish what he wanted to do, even if he used his speed. That was, at least, if he stayed at the same velocity they all knew him for. If things weren’t so dire, he would’ve let a bemused smile grace his lips; first Caitlin, and now his dad—was it a doctor thing to look at things so technically?

Barry felt well enough to respond with a small joke, though. “I better get going, then. Night vision isn’t on my repertoire.” The speedster moved to put on his cowl, but his perplexed expression was still easy to catch with it on as he took in the odd expression the older Allen displayed on his face. “What?”

If Henry was startled that he was caught lost in thought, he didn’t show it. Instead, he gave a knowing look and a playful smile. “Just…you’d do anything for Iris.”

“Yeah, well, I’d do the same for you.” And anyone else, really, though it was probably a poorly-kept secret that it was especially true for those closest to him.

“Mm,” the former doctor sounded affirmatively, “But it’s different with her. The bond you two share…I’m just reminded of how grateful I am that you had her, had _each other_ , while I was locked up.”

“Dad,” the younger Allen breathed out, feeling all the emotions bubble up that he was getting a little misty-eyed. He walked over and squeezed Henry’s shoulders as he spun him towards the tent. “I’ll be too tired to help you pack when I return, so you better be ready!” he half-teased, half-warned, and Barry shook his head and let out a laugh as he watched his dad for a few moments before speeding away.

His first stop had been to the site the Wests and he usually camped out at, and despite expecting it to be empty Barry couldn’t help the tinge of disappointment that came over him when he found it to indeed be devoid of any life. Still, he took the time to search the space carefully, eventually ending up at the water’s edge of the small lake nearby.

Barry only meant to stay for a second—he didn’t have time for anything more—but something was keeping him there. It was almost as if he could _feel_ Iris here with him, and he didn’t want to leave it, leave _her_. “Iris,” he spoke aloud, though it was barely over a whisper, “I’m here; I’m always with you. I swear to you I’m gonna bring you home if it’s the last thing I ever do. Just wait—I’m coming.”

The wind blew then, and he bowed his head as if in prayer, hoping it carried his words to her, wherever she was.

* * *

Iris hadn’t travelled very far from where she had started, but it wasn’t entirely because of her injured ankle. She knew it wouldn’t take Zoom very long to find her if she attempted to make an escape, but she wasn’t going to give the man a head start about which direction she was going in his presence. So she mainly just went in circles, trying to subtly scope out which way she thought the trees were thinning, as that was her best bet at hitting civilization, or at least a road to freedom. In the back of her mind she wondered why evil speedster would even risk a chance of her getting away, that there was some catch to all of this, some reason why she was here, out in the open. However, she couldn’t willingly decide to stay in his captivity without trying his hand, at least—she’d have to cross that bridge if and when she got there.

It took longer than she would’ve liked, but eventually the journalist no longer felt like she was being watched—Zoom was gone. Better safe than sorry, Iris stayed idle for a little while longer in case it was a trick. When she was sure as she was ever going to be, she allowed herself to wither to the ground, lifting her pant leg to reveal a now purple, swollen ankle. Letting out a shaky breath from the pain she had been containing, not wanting to show it in front of Zoom, Iris tore a hole at the bottom of her shirt with the help of a broken branch sticking out of the tree she sat beside, using it to rip the lower portion off. With the piece of fabric she now had, she wrapped it around her injured ankle in a makeshift compression, wincing at how tight she bound it but knowing it’d help in the long run.

With that done, Iris pulled herself to her feet, taking a gingerly step forward to test out her handiwork before moving in the direction she had picked out earlier. It was easy to get lost when everywhere she looked was just more endless rows of trees, but Iris couldn’t shake how familiar the place was. At first she thought she was starting to lose her mind when a group of trees jumped out at her, tugging at her memory—one too many circling around, maybe—but it was almost screaming at her the further she went on. And then it hit her; the area was not unlike the campsite her dad, Barry and she had gone to up until a few years ago. It looked different from what she remembered—there was a whole section where some trees were strewn haphazardly, seemingly snapped as if they were mere twigs—but that was to be expected with the passing of time.

Feeling hopeful at knowing where she was now—Zoom had made it seem like she’d be miles away from anything she’d know—Iris made her way to the lake she knew was nearby, desperate for some water. Upon arrival, the journalist was mindful of her ankle as she kneeled down at the water’s edge, uncaring of the dampness that soaked through her jeans as she did so, cupping her hands together and gulping the water she brought to her lips. Placated, she took a moment to take in the natural beauty around her—despite her grievances with lying on dirt and watering the bushes, she thought they should all really take some time after everything was said and done to go on a camping trip.

Just then, a gentle breeze blew past her, and Iris closed her eyes as it caressed her skin. For a moment, she thought she could hear Barry’s voice as the wind whistled in her ear, sounding as reassuring as his presence that she could swear she felt beside her. “Barry,” Iris said softly. “I know,” she continued, as if she knew exactly what he had said, that he was coming to get her, that they’d go home together. She had no doubts that he could make it happen; she felt it in her soul and trusted it, _him_ , with everything in her. “Just don’t be late,” she teased, knowing that despite being perpetually late, Barry would always be there when she needed him.

If there was anything she could do, though, she was going to do it. Slowly, the journalist rose to her feet, dusting herself off once she did so. If she could get to the road, she’d have better luck running into someone who could help her get back to the city. With that in mind, Iris trudged in the general direction she remembered it being in.

It wasn’t too long before Iris had heard something behind her, and she tensed as she spun around, eyes searching for the source of the sound. She failed to see anything, though, and she didn’t sense the same sinister pulsing waves she felt from Zoom, so she chalked it up to an animal. Though she turned back around and continued forward, Iris was now on full alert, and when she heard it again she rotated sharply. She still couldn’t make out anything or anyone, but the noise continued, coming closer—whatever it was, it didn’t bother trying to conceal its movement anymore.

Adrenaline kicked in, and it allowed the journalist to become numb to the throbbing pain in her ankle as she ran. She could hear it gaining ground on her, and in her haste Iris failed to notice and compensate for the change from the uneven, soft terrain of the forest to the smooth, hardened surface of the dirt road and tripped.

Falling right in front of an oncoming car.

Iris screamed just as the vehicle came to an abrupt stop a couple of feet in front of her, too shaken to move and breathing so rapidly she was close to hyperventilating. She could hear the car door open and moved her head to look up at the driver as they came around, but the sun was situated just above their head that it shadowed their face, and her having to lift a hand up to shield her eyes from the bright rays only further obscured the person’s features that she couldn’t see who it was very clearly.

But when the person spoke, Iris found that the voice was one that she could never forget.

“Iris?”

* * *

Shortly after Barry had left, Joe had gotten a call from Captain Singh and had to leave; Caitlin had gotten up to check on Wally before deciding it was a good time as any to give Linda a call, and Jay had immersed himself in figuring out a way to make his idea about closing the breaches a reality—it had to be done eventually, but if they were seriously going to start going after Zoom it was best to cut off and control all the ways he could jump between worlds and escape.

With everyone preoccupied, Cisco had slipped out of the Cortex and made his way to his safe haven in S.T.A.R. Labs, instantly finding peace surrounded by random parts they hoarded and tech that were still a work in progress. _Speaking of a work in progress…_ He plopped down on the nearest stool, staring at the object that sat innocently on the bench in front of him before reluctantly reaching out for it.

It was the goggles he had worn when he had first used his powers, long before he knew he was a meta-human and they coined the name ‘Vibe’—not that he did anything worthy enough to use his alter ego designation yet. Once upon a time he would’ve been beside himself to know he had powers, would’ve explored the extent of what he could do with glee, protect the city and people who cared about alongside one of his best friends, but now all he had was fear, self-depreciation and a deep loathing for the man who did this to him and made him feel this way.

How could he knowingly take pleasure in using his powers knowing that a despicable man who had wronged all of them and then some gave them to him? Who had used his own powers to do less than honourable things? Heck, even his doppelganger was inherently a backstabber (though, fool me twice, as they say). How could Cisco know he wouldn’t turn out exactly like him?

But things were different now—they had to be. This was bigger than him and his issues. They were essentially facing a speed demon and Barry needed help before he ran himself into the ground before Zoom had the chance to do it to him again. Then there was the matter of their missing friends, Iris especially for him—when Caitlin couldn’t handle working at S.T.A.R. Labs anymore and Barry went all Lone Ranger on them, Iris and Joe, even Dr. Stein, had become the only constant in his life, gave him a new job. He needed, wanted, and owned it to them, to _her_ , to do everything in his power to help find her.

As Cisco reached for a screwdriver, Jay walked in, and he dropped everything that was in his hands as if they burned him and tried to lean back in his chair all suave-like. _That wasn’t suspicious at all._

At the noise, the Earth-2 native slowed his pace and gave the engineer a curious look. “Oh, Cisco, there you are. What’re you doing here?”

Cisco cleared his throat. “I was just, uh, getting a head start on making a projectile device for that neutrino bomb of yours. Gotta shoot it into the breaches somehow, right?”

Jay nodded, glancing at something past him before looking back at him. “That’s great, thank you. But it’s kinda hard to do all that if all the materials for that are at the other side of the room isn’t it?” At Cisco’s cringe, the speedster approached the other male and took a look what was on the bench. “What are you really working on?” he asked curiously, picking up the goggles.

“Well, you know how I’m a…meta-human, right? I’ve actually used my powers before Dr. Light, back before the singularity even happened. At first we thought what I was seeing were nightmares, so we rigged this up to delve into my visions. I figured I could modify it, minus the sleep inducers, and actively try and see the vibrations around me.”

Jay smiled and nodded, proud of how far Cisco had come—from what he gathered, the engineer started off not even wanting to acknowledge he had powers at all. “Not afraid anymore?”

Cisco gave him a half-shrug. “More like…I found that’s there more important things than my fear.”

“ _That_ is what makes a hero, Cisco,” Jay said, patting him on the back before inspecting the eyewear once more. “You’ll have to find the frequency of this world and then program these to find anything that isn’t resonating with it—a hole in this universe, like a breach. You can probably do something similar for your hands, since your powers can also work by touch, right?”

Cisco pointed a finger at him and nodded slowly, his mind already racing at the possibilities. “Like gauntlets, or gloves, that can pick up residual vibrations left behind from items or people not from this frequency.” He could probably configure the formula Dr. Stein created in order to find the 52 breeches.

“Guys,” Caitlin’s voice sounded over the intercom, a prototype and couple hours later. “Barry’s back.”

Putting what they were doing on pause, the two males headed back to the Cortex, and found that that Henry was also there, along with Barry and Caitlin, the former of which was sitting at one of the separate computers, a mountain of empty Big Belly Burger cartons behind him, courtesy of Caitlin.

“Hey, any luck?” Cisco asked upon their arrival after nodding their salutations to Henry, who was eating some fries, though the lack of Iris’ presence was answer enough for him.

Barry shook his head as he wiped his mouth, confirming Cisco’s thoughts. “How about you guys?”

Caitlin rounded the main computer terminal, sitting down in front of one of the computers. “I called Linda, and though Iris’ contacts wouldn’t give her the whole scoop, she did manage to give me a name. I haven’t had the chance to search for him on the database yet, but the guy is Albert Desmond.”

The Earth 1 speedster looked sharply at the female doctor, but before he could say anything someone else beat him to it.

“How do you know that name?”

All the occupants of the room turned to look at Joe as he walked into the Cortex.

“Joe, what’s going on?” Barry asked.

Joe gave the room an once-over, double-taking on Henry and giving him a nod before answering. “I just came from seeing Captain Singh. Albert’s been AWOL for a few days now—apparently his yearly review was just recently conducted and it wasn’t looking too good.”

Cisco shook his head, clearly confused on what Barry and Joe knew that the rest of them didn’t. “Wait, we’re missing something here. Who is Albert Desmond?”

“The Director of the CSI Division at CCPD,” Barry replied, rubbing a hand across his forehead.

“Director?” Caitlin repeated. “As in—”

“—The job Gideon said you have in the future?” Cisco finished her sentence, completely floored. “That can’t be a coincidence.”

“It gets worse,” Joe continued, “He sent in a video. Barry…he has Patty.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had trouble deciding where I wanted to end it, and that seemed as good as I was going to get it lol 
> 
> I also tried super hard to understand the whole neutrino thing that Jay mentioned in 2x09 but when I googled it, it just went right over my head lmao So let’s make up stuff, yay.
> 
> And I know I’ve heard things about Mirror Master showing up in 2x10 (though the synopsis mentioned someone who could control time, and that doesn’t exactly fit what he can do—maybe Reverse Flash is at it again?), but I’ve got something else planned with Mirror Master, so I’m using Doctor Alchemy right now (who is also said to make an appearance sometime in Season 2).


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When did this become an episode out of those sci-fi shows she always used to watch with Barry? It was really saying something that somehow, after the year and a half since Barry had woken up from a coma, _this_ was the strangest thing she ever experienced.
> 
> How was this real life right now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHAAAAAAAAAT? I'm aliveeeeee? I know it's been over a year since I last updated this thing, and I don't think anyone would actually read this anymore, BUT the season three of the Flash has given me life, fam, and the inspiration to get back to writing! It was hard having to go back a season where all the beautiful-ness of Westallen hasn't happened yet, but alas!
> 
> Special shoutout to bruna, because even though your comments were a little overwhelming at times, it was nice to know someone's actually that excited for a new chapter lmao
> 
> I tried very hard to drop the descriptive pronouns that I love writing but numerous people have commented on finding distracting, so hopefully I succeeded in doing that!

“Barry?”

For a moment, everything felt _right_ again—as it always did when her best friend was around—and she was ready to get up and throw her arms around him because _he found her_ like she knew he would…but just as quickly as the feeling came it was gone again as the man Iris thought was Barry had crouched down in front of her, allowing her to _really_ get a look at him.

It _was_ Barry but…it _wasn’t_ him, either, unless he suddenly changed his hair style and got a new look that involved glasses, a bowtie and a suit since the last time she saw him.  At least his name was the same, if the lack of correction to her calling him Barry was anything to go by. Iris was pretty sure the confused look on Barry’s clone was the exact same that was on her face at the moment.

“Iris, sweetie, I am _so_ sorry, I didn’t even see you there—what _are_ you doing here anyway, hon? Are you undercover?” It was almost as if Barry was asking himself that question, like it was the only logical explanation for both her appearance—where did she get tight pants like _those_ —and location, except… “Though _why_ you would need to be undercover in the middle of the forest is beyond me, but you know your job better than I do…”

Iris had closed her eyes, waiting patiently to get a word in—the babbling was definitely a universal Barry trait, that was for sure—but her eyebrows furrowed together the more her— _this_ Barry continued. Iris didn’t even know which she should even address first—the terms of endearment (which was short-circuiting her brain in more ways than one), or the reason why she would even need to be undercover in the first place (though thinking on it now, it’d be really useful for some investigating…). She was getting more confused the more she learned.

Before she could make up her mind on which question she wanted answered first, though, Iris heard a beeping noise, then something _whooshing_ past them followed by Barry yelping, and chocolate brown eyes opened to gaze upon a huge icicle buried in the ground not two feet from where they were.

Oh, right, she had forgotten she was running away from something.

“You went to see _Killer Frost_?” Not-her-Barry exclaimed, scrambling to grab Iris’ arms to help her up to her feet so that they could leave, _now_ , as his—wristwatch?, Iris guessed—continued to alarm.

“I didn’t—” Iris protested—she didn’t even know who or what a Killer Frost was—but didn’t get to say much more as a pained gasp escaped her lips next instead when she tried to take a step forward once she was standing. Of _course_ her injured ankle had to make itself known again at that exact moment.

Noticing that not only had they barely moved but that Iris was also now leaning more heavily against him, Barry looked back at her and realized she was favouring one leg over the other. Though he had a million questions he wanted to ask, another icicle embedded itself in the ground closer to them and Barry conceded that maybe right there right then and there was perhaps _not_ the time or place to play twenty questions.

“Okay, live now, talk later,” Barry said, voicing his thoughts, and it was all the warning Iris got before she was gathered in his arms and carried to his car (in hindsight, Iris would realize it was at _normal_ speed). After being placed down on the passenger seat, the man stumbled over to the driver’s side (also quite un-Barry-like), almost tripping in his haste to avoid another icy projectile before fumbling with the gears and reversing right down the path he had been driving up on.

Iris turned to watch their back from the rear window, only managing to catch a glimpse of a woman with white hair before she disappeared out of view as they turned the corner and Barry righted the car around so that he was driving forwards instead of backwards. But a glimpse was all Iris needed, as she knew the owner of that face. “Caitlin?” Why was Caitlin attacking them?

“Who’s Caitlin?”

Iris settled properly in her seat as she moved her gaze to the man beside her, absentmindedly putting on her seatbelt, because how ironic would it be to escape an icicle in the chest only to die flying through the windshield in a fiery car wreck? “You know—the woman back there.”

Barry’s eyes moved franticly between looking out the windshield and up at the rear view mirror, both hoping to not see the meta-human still chasing them and wondering if they were talking about the same person. “The wom—since when are you on a first name basis with _Killer Frost_?!”

“I…” Iris’ mind raced at a speed that rivalled the rate her heartbeat was thumping in her ears. How was she going to explain what was going on when she wasn’t even sure herself the answer to that question? What _could_ she even say? Would she mess up the timeline or something if she revealed too much? That’s how these things worked, right?

(When did this become an episode out of those sci-fi shows she always used to watch with Barry? It was really saying something that somehow, after the year and a half since Barry had woken up from a coma, _this_ was the strangest thing she ever experienced.

How was this real life right now?)

_Wait._ Barry had said something about being undercover, right? “I discovered…Killer Frost’s…true identity while I was undercover, and…”

“And you thought you’d confront her?” Barry exclaimed incredulously. Iris’ mouth opened but no words came, and he sighed at the implied answer he believed her silence meant. “Iris, you’re the bravest person I know, but perhaps you should’ve brought some back up with you? Like the rest of CCPD…or at the very least your partner…”

That little tidbit made Iris pause. Journalists usually worked alone. “My partner?”

Barry made a face as if he didn’t exactly agree with the term himself. “I know I’ve said my piece about how I feel about Detective Lawton being your partner and his ability to have your back when his marksmanship ratings are _atrocious_ , but you trust him and I trust _you_ and…” He took a moment to catch his breath in between his rant slash explanation. “I wasn’t mocking him when I called him your partner.”

_Detective…_ A small smile graced Iris’ lips. W _hen_ ever she was, she had followed through with her original plan to join the police force. While she didn’t regret becoming a reporter nor had any doubts that she would’ve been successful had she stayed in the Academy, it felt gratifying to know that she had done it, and was doing it well.

Realizing Barry was waiting for a response if his constant glances towards her were anything to go by—was this Lawton guy someone they argued about a lot over?—Iris nodded, placing a hand upon his arm in assurance. “I know, Barry. I’m sorry I worried you. I didn’t exactly plan for… _any_ of this.” And that was putting it lightly. Desperate to have the spotlight thrown off her, Iris cleared her throat and turned toward him. “Not that I’m not grateful, because you _did_ just save my life, but what were _you_ doing out there?”

“Oh!” With all the excitement, the reason why he was at Granite Peak felt like a distance memory. “I just came to finish up going over the crime scene from Zoom’s latest attack. You know the one, you were there. With the whole citywide curfew I suppose people are trying to come up here to escape, but…Zoom’s showing us there’s nowhere to hide.”

If Iris had to guess, the noise Barry made afterward was him trying to laugh the grave comment off in fake bravado, but instead his nervousness and fear were only more pronounced. It was a little disconcerting, seeing Barry like that—she was used to his seemingly endless optimism. “Hey,” she said gently but firmly, and Barry did a double-take when he glanced over at her, startled by the utter conviction in her face and voice when she said, “We’re gonna stop Zoom, don’t doubt that.”

How could he, after that? In complete awe, Barry nodded, and then fumbled with the steering wheel when he remember that he should be looking straight ahead at the road, not at his wife.

Smiling at the display, Iris started to move her head back forward, too, until all of Barry’s words sunk in and she smacked him lightly on the arm, causing him to swerve the car slightly in surprise.

“I-Iris, what—” Barry sputtered, adjusting his glasses that had gone askew.

“You should listen to your own advice! Telling me not to go without backup and here you are without the rest of your CSI team! What if Zoom was still out there or if Cait—Killer Frost found you instead?” Barry could take care of himself, Iris knew that, but she also still couldn’t shake the image of him going through physiotherapy after his last encounter with Zoom. Even if it wasn’t _her_ Barry it didn’t stop her from caring about him. Iris didn’t believe there would ever be a Barry that she wouldn’t care for deeply.

Although anxious at first about what he had done to warrant Iris attacking him, Barry felt his heart swell when he realized she was coming from a place of fear for him. While he and Joseph had their disagreements where Iris was concerned, he had to admit that he agreed with his father-in-law on one thing—she was too good for him. “You’re right, I apologize. But with you watching my back, who needs them, yeah?”

The goofy smile he sent her was infectious, and a comfortable silence fell between them. Iris occupied herself with staring out the window at the familiar scenery while it passed.

…That was, until it wasn’t so familiar anymore.

It was hard to tell in the woods—nature, if left untouched, was timeless like that—but if Iris needed any solid evidence that she was not in the same place she was when she woke up in bed that morning—other than the Barry-but-not-Barry beside her and the Caitlin who was apparently a metahuman going by Killer Frost—she got it entering Central City.

The sun had set beyond the horizon as they entered the metropolis, but the differences were still as stark as if it had still been daylight. It was like a place trapped in two different time periods, and neither of them were the one she knew. The citizens that walked down the sidewalk dressed like they were from some old classic movie, but their technology was incredibly futuristic, and that was saying something with what she knew about S.T.A.R. Labs was capable of doing.

Zoom hadn’t taken her to the past, or the future, or a different timeline like she had originally thought. He had taken her to an entirely different universe. He took her to where Jay was from.

He had brought her to Earth 2.

They passed by a sign that said that _Leonard Snart_ was the mayor, and Iris craned her neck, following it with her eyes until it disappeared from view. What kind of backwards world was this?

So caught up in the incredulousness of Captain Cold being the leader of a city and the numbness of the realization of where she was Iris didn’t realize Barry was calling her until he squeezed her hand, his voice panicky as he said her name.

“Iris! I’ve been trying to talk to you for ten minutes,” Barry continued once he realized he finally had her attention. “Did you sustain a head injury during your altercation with Killer Frost?”

“A part of me wishes I did,” she murmured to herself; what she wouldn’t give to have all of this be a bad dream. It was then that she realized that they had stopped, the car parked in front of what looked like her dad’s house, and Iris hoped some things (like Barry, for the most part) didn’t change.

If the frown on Barry’s face was any indication, he had heard her comment, and hearing his wife wish bodily harm to herself was worrying. “Perhaps we should swing by the hospital,” he suggested, moving to change the gear of the car to reverse before he paused, stopping before he even let go of her hand. “Iris, where’s your ring?”

Instinctively, Iris reached for her neck—how did this Barry even know about that—only to remember that she had lost the necklace with the replica of her mother’s ring –somewhere between travelling dimensions, she guessed. As she chanced a glance him though, it wasn’t her collar that Barry was staring at, but her left hand that he had grasped to get her out of her dazed state just moments before.

She didn’t need three chances to guess which finger was lacking some bling, and the gravity of the situation left her breathless. First the newspaper article, and now this…was the universe trying to tell her something?

(Something she had been denying herself of?)

“I…” Iris swallowed through the emotion that was gathering in her throat, “For the assignment…” Distantly, she wondered how long she could use that undercover excuse until it got old, but that time hadn’t come yet as Barry nodded slowly at her flimsy explanation.

“Right! Well, let’s get you inside to bandage that ankle and get that ring back on your finger. I bet you feel naked without it!”

“Yeah…” She laughed weakly to match Barry’s chuckle before watching as he came around the passenger door, offering himself as a crutch as they made their way up the stairs and into their house. Because it was _their_ house, Iris learned quickly—that fact was made readily apparent right as a large display of pictures of Earth 2’s Barry and Iris sat upon the table by the door.

“I’ll go fetch the first aid kit, you just mosey on over to the couch carefully,” Barry said as he shrugged off his coat, his voice tapering off as he disappeared further into the house in search of said item.

Iris made no indication that she had heard him, engrossed by a life that was and yet wasn’t hers, one that _could_ be hers, if… Gently, as if any harder would shatter the illusion, she traced her fingers down the picture frame of a photo of her doppelganger and Barry’s on their wedding day.

“Iris, hon, you didn’t move an inch!” Barry teased when he returned, setting the kit down on the ottoman in front of the couch. “Do you need me to—ah, hold on one moment.” He was cut off as the phone began ringing, and he shuffled over to answer it. “Hello, West-Allen residence. Iris! You’re going to be coming home late? I—wait.”

Iris froze when Barry had said her name when he replied to the other person on the phone, the single word snapping her out of her trance like an ice cold bucket of water washing over her, knowing it wasn’t _her_ that he was speaking to. Earth 2 Barry had, bless his soul, continued replying to his wife as if he had forgotten that _she_ was there, cringing when it finally hit him.

Slowly, Iris turned to face him and was met with his wide eyes, mouth hanging open and a finger pointed at her, the phone he held to his ear with his other hand forgotten, though she was sure her other self was still trying to talk to her husband.

“If the Iris on the phone is my wife…who the heck are you?!”

***

“…So turn yourself in to me if you value your girlfriend’s life. If I’m going down, I’m taking you with me—”

“Turn it off,” Barry muttered as he slid a hand down his face. It was the second time they had played the video that Albert Desmond had sent in, and what the man was spewing was so crazy they had to watch it another time once they were over the shock.

“I don’t know whether I’m more flabbergasted over the fact that the man’s like a fake airbender, or the fact that he thinks ‘Mister Element’ is a great alias name,” Cisco said after a moment, breaking the silence that followed the abrupt ending of the clip. In a display of how serious he was with his threats, Albert had showcased one of his many chemically engineered elemental weapons, hitting a target with a solution that had disintegrated it in seconds.

Caitlin’s eyebrows rose at statement, but Barry didn’t lift his head off from where he had placed them on top of his folded arms, completely done with the situation. Joe didn’t look impressed, Henry seemed worried for his son and Jay…well, he wasn’t sure what to make of the situation. It wasn’t every day that you learned that your friend’s superior had been committing crimes that he would then solve himself and take the credit for, after all.

“Really, _that’s_ what you’re focusing on? What about the fact that the man just accused Barry of falsifying his analysis to coincide with Patty’s reports, and then kidnapped his co-worker when he was caught as leverage?” Caitlin pointed out.

“…Yeah, that’s pretty messed up.”

Barry, Cisco, Caitlin, Henry and Jay turned to stare at the owner of the new voice, stunned, but Joe had replied almost automatically as if he didn’t register who the voice belonged to at first. “This is Central City—it’s like _ground zero_ for messed up…Wally!”

Having finally placed why the voice was so familiar and moving his gaze in the direction that everyone else was looking at, the detective saw his son standing at the doorway of the medical room they had placed him in, looking back at them with equally wide eyes.

Joe was the first to snap out his stupor despite being the last to clue in, and he hastily approached Wally, hands outstretched ready to catch him if he fell (what was he doing standing, anyway?), eyes already scanning for any further signs of injury. “You’re awake! Are you okay?”

“Well, other than having no idea where I am and feeling like a jackhammer is going at my skull, I’m good. What’s going on?” the youngest West answered as cheerfully as he could, his gaze sliding over to the woman that was now approaching him.

“Hi, Wally, my name is Dr. Caitlin Snow, and you’re in S.T.A.R. Labs. Joe brought you here after your…accident,” Caitlin paused briefly, sharing a glance with Joe to make sure she was following the correct story they were going with.

Wally’s fragile smile faded at that statement. “Wait, _accident_? What accident? Last I remember I was with Iris. Is she okay?”

There was another moment of hesitation, but Joe had stepped in before it could look (anymore) suspicious. “Yeah, Iris is…she’s good. She had to leave suddenly for work or she would’ve stayed to see you wake up.”

Wally nodded slowly, somewhat mollified by the explanation of his sister’s absence, and allowed himself to be gestured back into the medical room by—Dr. Snow, was it?—as she started speaking again.

“Do you think I can run some tests on you? You had suffered a concussion and…”

Caitlin’s voice trailed off as the two of them disappeared from view, and Joe gave what remained of the group one last glance before joining them.

“I know it’s the best excuse we could come up with, but it’s still so weird to talk about Iris like she’s _not_ in another world being held captive by a psychotic speedster,” Cisco mumbled as he watched the three leave, and he had the decency to look apologetic when he noticed the grimace Barry made at his statement—he should’ve thought that through before he said it.

“Never mind the fact that Iris would never prioritize work over being there for someone who was hurt and needed her,” Henry added, looking torn. From what he learned in his quick summary of what he’d missed, Wally had just recently reunited with Joe and Iris, and it was sad to think the young boy might believe his sister was someone like that.

“Speaking of Iris, now that we have a more solid lead on Patty, what do you want to do, Barry?” Jay asked, attempting to change the subject but actually making things worse, because now…

…Now Barry had to decide who to save _first_ , and he felt unsettled that his head was beating out his heart. He dug the heels of his palms into the backs of his eyes, the image of Patty’s tear-stained face from the video seared behind his eyelids.

Iris had told him to be honest with Patty, to tell her the truth about him being the Flash if he wanted to take their relationship to the next step, and while he knew she had a point and was speaking from experience, a part of him was hesitant.

This wasn’t Patty’s life, all this craziness, her involvement in the Metahuman Task Force notwithstanding, and that had really appealed to Barry. He had wanted to escape that part of his life, to find something, someone, who didn’t remind him of his failures or was in danger because of his alter ego.

But he was in a better place now, thanks to Iris and the others keeping him grounded, helping him trust again with Jay and strengthening Team Flash that he himself fractured. Being the Flash no longer felt like a duty to him, no longer a burden he had to carry alone, and he didn’t want to hide that part of himself anymore, not from the people he cared about.

Besides, even when it had nothing to do with Zoom, or with him being the Flash, crazy things like his supervisor being an evil meta-human happened to just plain old Barry, putting Patty in danger anyway. So he might as well just let Patty in, right? Let himself be happy…

And she was right there, right within reach where he can save her…

“We’ll save Patty first,” Barry eventually answered, his voice as heavy as his heart—it made the most logical sense, but that didn’t make it hurt any less to know he had to put off getting to Iris. “I mean, Jay has a point: this is our first solid lead on either of them. End this quickly and then we can focus everything on getting Iris back…right?”

Sensing Barry’s conviction wavering, the others were quick to agree with him. “It’s a solid plan.” Cisco voiced first. “This…Mister Element,” he used the name with great reluctance, “Seems like a small fry compared to other metas we’ve encountered, so you’ll be in and out with Patty and off to save Iris in no time.”

Barry nodded, confident once more in the reassurance. “All right, okay, but you guys _gotta_ finalize how we’re closing down these breaches. Once I get Patty back I don’t want to waste any time heading to Earth 2.”

Jay and Cisco shared a look, knowing that task was on them. “We won’t let you down, Barry,” Jay promised.

“So,” Henry started, speaking up for the first time since his arrival, “We’ve got a rough sketch of a plan, but what are the details of this plan, exactly? Mister—Albert,” he amended, which got him a salute from Cisco, “Wants _Barry_ to come forward, but it’s _the Flash_ that has to take him down.”

“That’s a conundrum,” Cisco agreed. “With two of their own in danger, you know the CCPD is gonna be all over this. Even if Joe manages to convince them to scale down their operation, you’ll still be outing yourself in front of Patty and Element the moment you use your powers to save her.”

Barry cleared his throat, wringing his hands together as he said, “Actually, I was thinking of telling Patty the truth.”

Cisco’s eyebrows rose at the confession. “Like, join Team Flash?” At Barry’s ‘maybe’ shrug, he tilted his head to the side in thought. “I mean, she’s shown that she knows her way around a gun, and her name for King Shark was on point. That seems like Team Flash material to me.”

“Are you sure this is how you want to reveal it to her?” At the end of the day, it was his son’s secret to tell and thus his decision alone to make, but that didn’t mean Henry wasn’t going to make sure Barry went about it right. “No preamble, just use your powers in front of her and hope she takes it well?”

His dad had a point, but… “It’s not like I can ask Albert to give me a moment to have a heart to heart with Patty.”

“Maybe you don’t have to have the conversation at all—at least, not yet,” Jay offered. “If Barry and the Flash appear together, no one will question it.”

“You want him to create a speed mirage,” Cisco said, following the other man’s train of thought. Well, it certainly worked for Dr. Wells, and Barry had used it against Doctor Light…

Barry didn’t look entirely convinced. “I don’t think it works like that, guys. My afterimages were static at best against Light, and I need to be fully interactive as both—” He stopped himself as an idea hit him, and the rest of the group looked at him when he suddenly stopped talking.

“What’s on your mind, son?” Henry asked.

Sliding his hands over the top of his ears in one of his many nervous ticks, Barry looked both hopeful and cautious at the same time. “It’s gonna sound crazy…”

Cisco gave him a look as if to say ‘Are you for real right now?’ “If one word could sum up our lives since we’ve met it’d be crazy, so spill.”

“Well…”

***

“This is a crazy,” Joe muttered as he escorted Barry to the entrance of the warehouse Albert had given after the CCPD had replied to his video on Barry’s behalf.

Several feet behind them was the police barricade, where Captain Singh watched them with eyes like a hawk. He may have agreed to let the Flash be Barry’s primary back up, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t be ready to storm in the second it looked like things went sideways.

“I’m not sure _crazy_ is the right word…” Cisco’s voice came through the earpiece in Barry and Joe’s left ear; physically, he was back in the Cortex of S.T.A.R. Labs. After Barry had laid out his plan, Cisco and Henry returned to the Cortex while Jay went to get a head start on the neutrino bomb.

“How about _insane_ , then?” Caitlin piped up from her place at the terminal beside Cisco. After her evaluation of Wally, she found that he was cognitively okay, but had asked him to stay overnight as a precaution—in one of the rooms on another level for _his_ privacy, of course, though it helped them as well. It wouldn’t do to worry about Barry telling his secret to Patty only to end up revealing it to Wally by mistake, too. On the next monitor over she was able to watch Wally’s vitals

“I was going for _ambitious_ , but dang, okay.” Cisco put his hands up in defence. “I’m feeling so attacked right now.”

“Guys,” Barry cut in, “This was my idea. But thanks for having my back, Cisco.”

“At least somebody appreciates me!” Cisco exclaimed.

“Barry, you’re talking about taking a hit from this guy,” Caitlin tried to reason. Barry’s plan seemed simple enough: go in as Barry, let himself be attacked, where Barry would then ‘be unconscious’, giving him a reason to be out for the count while the Flash comes in as backup. But so many things could go wrong. “That’s dangerous enough when you’re wearing the suit—and you won’t be for this!”

“I—”

“And don’t you dare try to say that you heal fast!”

That shut Barry up, who pursed his lips together at Caitlin’s admonishing. _But I do_ was childishly at the tip of his tongue, but he restrained himself from being an ass. He knew she meant well, but… “Look, this is the best we’ve got. It’ll be fine. _I’ll_ be fine. How can I not be, with the best doctor on call, right?” he finished sweetly, hoping to sweet talk his way back into her good graces.

Caitlin grumbled something that sounded like, “I’ll show you on call,” and then went silent. Barry hoped that meant that things were cool between them all, but he didn’t have time to make sure as they reached the front doors of the warehouse—the end of the line for Joe.

The same Joe who had been quiet ever since he prompted that entire exchange in the first place. Still without saying a word, Joe reached down and un-holstered his spare firearm from his ankle, handing it over to Barry, who refused to take it.

“Joe, I can’t—”

“Forget about CSI not carrying guns, or the Flash being able to dodge whatever comes his way. The reason why I said that comment was out of worry for _you_ , Bear. This isn’t only about Iris or Patty.  You’re always busy trying to save everyone else that you never look after yourself. So _this_ ,” Joe stressed, holding out the weapon again, “is me, looking after you the only way I can.”

They didn’t have eyes inside or outside of the warehouse, but Henry could piece together what was happening just from the word ‘gun’ Joe had uttered. “Protecting you is our job, son,” he said. “Let us do it. Even if you never use the thing, it’ll put us at ease knowing it’s there if you need it.”

Swallowing through the emotion that had built up in his throat the more both men that he considered fathers spoke, Barry blinked away the wetness in his eyes and nodded, not trusting his voice not to crack if he said anything. Accepting the gun, he noticed it felt heavier than the tranquilizer gun he had when they were hunting down Grodd last year.

“Thank you,” Barry managed, and it was clear that he was referring to more than just the weapon—it was for the gesture, their words, their love.

With a pat on the back, Joe began slowly walking backwards towards the barricade as to not lose sight of Barry until he slipped inside the building. With the gun pointed towards the ground but out in front of him at the ready, Barry moved further in, scanning around as he did so in case Albert was hiding amongst the many crates and scaffolding. On the flip side, at least he had several places he could ‘go unconscious’ without being seen.

It was then that he spotted her—tied by all four limbs to a chair, to which she was trying to pull herself free from, even now after all this time since she’s been kidnapped, was Patty. Barry started to move towards her before he paused for a moment. Something seemed…off about her. Maybe it was the lighting…or the fact that she was dishevelled and probably hungry and, _duh, Barry, I’d like to see you look pristine after being held captive_ , and he shook his worries out of his head.

“Patty!” Barry whispered loudly as he neared her, feeling relief when they locked eyes as she stopped her movements to look up at him.

“Barry!” The joy of seeing her boyfriend lit her face up, but it slowly faded as the implications of him being there meant. “Barry, you shouldn’t be here, it’s a trap—”

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Barry Allen in the flesh,” said a voice from around the corner, and Barry brought up the gun, pointing it in the direction where Albert Desmond soon appeared from. In one hand was the elemental weapon Barry recognized from the video he had sent in. “I didn’t think they’d let their golden boy come in alone—and with his own weapon, too,” Albert added upon seeing the gun, “My, they really do bend the rules for you.”

This wasn’t the Albert he knew. His supervisor had always been kind, passionate about his job and eager to share what he knew with his subordinates. Could this really be the same man? It was like they were two different people. “Albert, your beef is with me. Let her go,” Barry said, nodding over towards Patty.

Albert glanced over at Patty and for a moment he hesitated—a multitude of emotions flittered over his face before he shook his head as if trying to clear it out. When he gazed upon Barry again, a manic look was in his eyes, and Albert pointed his weapon at Patty, his hand steady. “Now why would I do that? She’s part of the reason I’m in this mess to begin with!”

_You did this to yourself!_ Barry wanted to say, but he had enough sense left to know that antagonizing that man who held a weapon aimed at his girlfriend wasn’t the best move. “Albert…” he warned, but his desperation was evident in both his speech and his actions as he moved to use both hands to clutch at the gun he held.

“You know, I’d be worried if I actually thought you would shoot me. What would everyone say if their perfect CSI killed someone?”

It was true that Barry was more inclined to avoid killing people as the Flash, never hated anyone enough to _want_ to kill them, with the exception of the Reverse Flash. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t harm anyone; so as he watched in slow motion as Albert started to pull on the trigger, Barry pointed at Albert’s right leg and fired.

Albert staggered back, but it was more out of shock that Barry had shot him than from actual injury, as the bullet seemed lodged in a gel that covered him from the neck down.

“What the…” Barry breathed out, confused.

A small laugh that soon grew to something almost hysterical escaped from between Albert’s lips. “I never thought—though I guess it’s good that I prepared from the unexpected!” Noticing Barry’s baffled expression, he went on to add, “Bulletproof silicone; one of my first concoctions in the lab.”

Barry shook his head in disbelief—Captain Singh, Joe, Patty...the number of people Albert’s invention could help was endless. “Why didn’t you share this with anyone? This could save lives!”

“And have them use it against me? Or worse, give all the credit to you?” Albert sneered. “Never! Now it’s my turn!” Twisting something on his weapon, he pointed his gun towards Barry and let out a burst of cold.

Things were going exactly as planned, what with pulling Albert’s attention off of Patty and onto himself so that he can be attacked…as well as the taking the hit hurting about was bad as Barry thought it would. Feeling pain blossom from his right shoulder and begin to numb all the surrounding nerves, he dramatically half-slid, half-fell into a pile of nearby boxes and rolled behind a stack of crates, completely hidden from view.

“Barry!” Patty cried out.

“Ugh, why does it always have to be a cold gun?” Barry groaned lowly, arching his back in pain when his injured shoulder touched the ground. Now that he thought about it, though, that explained why Captain Singh was asking him whether Captain Cold was back again—it was just Albert framing Cold for all the crimes he committed. _Snart would be pissed if he found out._

“Barry! Are you all right?” Henry asked as he watched his son’s vitals spiral on one of the many display screens in the Cortex.

“Yeah, just gotta shake it off.” Barry smiled lightly at his own joke before he did just that, vibrating his molecules to gather warmth.

“Now’s your chance, bro,” Cisco reminded him once Barry stabilized, and in the next moment Barry was gone.

In the warehouse, Albert kept his weapon pointed in the direction Barry had fallen in, ready to strike him again if he got back on his feet. When several moments passed with no movement, he smirked, turning his attention back to Patty, who cowered away from him as best she could tied to the chair. “I wish he gave me more fun, but I expected as much from that career-stealer. Now,” Albert paused dramatically as he lifted his weapon and aimed it at Patty, “it’s your turn.”

Suddenly, a gust of wind swept past them, and the Flash appeared, his arms crossed as he took in the scene in front of him. “Someone asked for some fun? Haven’t you heard the term ‘be careful what you wish for’?”

“Flash,” Albert spat as if his name was a curse. “So Allen had you in his back pocket? No wonder he gained so much favour.”

_Had._ As if Barry—he—was dead. He snorted inwardly at the assumption before he uncrossed his arms. “I’m pretty sure it’s because he didn’t go around causing crimes and solving them himself to further his own career, but hey, if that helps you sleep at night. You’ll have a lot of time to think on it in Iron Heights.”

“Not if I kill you first—or you fail to catch me; I’m not particularly picky.”

That was all the warning the Flash got before he was attacked, but he was ready for the cold blast that hit him this time around. It was the scorching fire that came next that made him pause until he remembered that Cisco had first designed his suit for firefighters to withstand heat.

He had to end this. Barry wasn’t sure which element would be thrown at him next and he couldn’t risk encountering one he couldn’t deal with—leaving Patty when she was _right there_ to have a brainstorm session with the rest of the team was not an option.

The good news was that Albert wasn’t a meta-human—separate him from his elemental gun and he was harmless. Creating a whirlwind with his arms _would_ unbalance Albert, but it could hurt Patty, too, whom Albert was keeping in close enough proximity that it wouldn’t work. Albert wouldn’t chase him with a long ranged weapon, and it had a wide enough area of effect that flanking him was also a no go.

Then it hit him—Albert wasn’t the only one who could use the elements. _Lightning toss._ He’d have to adjust the voltage so that it was closer to taser gun strength than struck dead by actual lightning strength, but knocking the other guy out was his best shot.

“I didn’t think we were playing hide and seek, Flash!” Albert taunted, keeping his finger pressed on the trigger once the Flash showed himself again and began running around in circles. “Is your grand plan to get me dizzy, because—”

Albert didn’t get to finish his sentence, as he was struck dead center by a bolt of lightning. He dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes, and the Flash sped over to his side, sliding the weapon away from Albert’s grasp in case he wasn’t actually unconscious with his feet before kneeling down to check his pulse.

_Still alive._ Breathing a sigh of relief, the Flash looked up and locked eyes with Patty. “Are you all right?” he asked in his disguised voice as he got up and approached her, immediately working on freeing her.

Patty didn’t say anything, her body shaking as her adrenaline began to wane and fear took precedence again. “Barry…” she started, and the Flash froze—did she know, was it all for naught?—but he relaxed as she continued. “Did you see Barry? He got hurt because of me…”

“He’d do it for you again, I’m sure,” the Flash said softly before adding more strongly, “I didn’t see him, but how about you find him while I deal with that guy.” He over towards Albert.

Patty bobbed her head in silent agreement, and as soon as she was free she jumped up and wrapped her arms around the Flash, needing something real, solid, _safe_ , for a moment. “Thank you, thank you for being here for us.”

Resisting the urge to return the gesture, the Flash simply said, “I’m sorry I was late.” Pulling away, he disappeared, depositing Albert in the hands of Captain Singh before returning to the spot he had collapsing at as Barry. He had just enough time to mess up his hair and clothes and lie back before Patty had rounded the corner, rousing him awake with a shake on his shoulder and her hands on his face.

She babbled as she embraced him, and honestly it went over Barry’s head—he caught something about being ‘brave’ and ‘stupid’. All he could focus on was the fact Patty had her arms around him again, and Barry allowed what he had denied himself as the Flash just moments before: he let himself cherish the moment.

For one moment, Barry let himself forget that this was _his_ fault; let himself savour the small victory before the larger battle that awaited ahead; let himself pretend that there wasn’t a part of him missing, and would always remain hallow, if Iris West was not _home_.

Barry wrapped his arms around her, returning the gesture, and convinced himself for this one moment, this was enough.

***

“Aww, isn’t that sweet. It’s the happy ending that you wanted. Only…it’s not with _you_ , is it? I wonder how long it’ll take him to figure it out. Eh, Patty?”

Trying to ignore the latest head game her captor relentlessly tried to play with her since she was taken, Patty continued  her fruitless banging against the glass of her prison, her screams only barely drowning out the man’s laughter at her misery.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DUN DUN DUN. I didn't mean for this chapter to be as long as it ended up being, especially with all the focus on Barry's end, but I really wanted to end with that final scene so it had to happen! I decided to go the Mister Element route and leave the evolution to Doctor Alchemy for the future, if I ever get there lmao 
> 
> It was also super hard to write Barry with Patty, ugh. But the end is near, I promise! There was this really beautiful gif set on tumblr about how Eddie and Patty were people Iris and Barry 'loved', but were not 'in love' with, and I am definitely channeling that because that's really what their relationships with each other were IMO. I'm not a fan of her actress, but Patty herself was one of those characters that could've been great if the writers knew what to do with her, as with many other characters they messed up.
> 
> I've had an idea for a story set during the Invasion crossover that I've been dying to write, so that's next. Also finally planning on posting my Flash location pictures from Vancouver, and making a fanvid, so feel free to come and squeal with me about anything on my [tumblr](http://questingtheworld.tumblr.com/)!

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on [my tumblr](http://unleashwithin.tumblr.com/post/135427646801/choices); it was too late for me to even attempt dual posting at the time.


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